Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Potential of Polyphenols Contained in Mediterranean Diet in Obesity: Molecular Mechanisms

Nutrition transition can be defined as shifts in food habits, and it is characterized by high-fat (chiefly saturated animal fat), hypercaloric and salty food consumption at the expense of dietary fibers, minerals and vitamins. Western dietary patterns serve as a model for studying the impact of nutrition transition on civilization diseases, such as obesity, which is commonly associated with oxidative stress and inflammation. In fact, reactive oxygen species (ROS) overproduction can be associated with nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB)-mediated inflammation in obesity. NF-κB regulates gene expression of several oxidant-responsive adipokines including tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α). Moreover, AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), which plays a pivotal role in energy homeostasis and in modulation of metabolic inflammation, can be downregulated by IκB kinase (IKK)-dependent TNF-α activation. On the other hand, adherence to a Mediterranean-style diet is highly encouraged because of its healthy dietary pattern, which includes antioxidant nutraceuticals such as polyphenols. Indeed, hydroxycinnamic derivatives, quercetin, resveratrol, oleuropein and hydroxytyrosol, which are well known for their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities, exert anti-obesity proprieties. In this review, we highlight the impact of the most common polyphenols from Mediterranean foods on molecular mechanisms that mediate obesity-related oxidative stress and inflammation. Hence, we discuss the effects of these polyphenols on a number of signaling pathways. We note that Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) dietary polyphenols can de-regulate nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidase (NOX) and NF-κB-mediated oxidative stress, and metabolic inflammation. MedDiet polyphenols are also effective in upregulating downstream effectors of several proteins, chiefly AMPK.     

Untargeted Phytochemical Profile,Antioxidant Capacity and Enzyme Inhibitory Activity of Cultivated and Wild Lupin Seeds from Tunisia

Lupin seeds can represent a valuable source of phenolics and other antioxidant compounds. In this work, a comprehensive analysis of the phytochemical profile was performed on seeds from three Lupinus species, including one cultivar (Lupinus albus) and two wild accessions (Lupinus cossentinii and Lupinus luteus), collected from the northern region of Tunisia. Untargeted metabolomic profiling allowed to identify 249 compounds, with a great abundance of phenolics and alkaloids. In this regard, the species L. cossentinii showed the highest phenolic content, being 6.54 mg/g DW, followed by L. luteus (1.60 mg/g DW) and L. albus (1.14 mg/g DW). The in vitro antioxidant capacity measured by the ABTS assay on seed extracts ranged from 4.67 to 17.58 mg trolox equivalents (TE)/g, recording the highest values for L. albus and the lowest for L. luteus. The DPPH radical scavenging activity ranged from 0.39 to 3.50 mg TE/g. FRAP values varied between 4.11 and 5.75 mg TE/g. CUPRAC values for lupin seeds ranged from 7.20 to 8.95 mg TE/g, recording the highest for L. cossentinii. The results of phosphomolybdenum assay and metal chelation showed similarity between the three species of Lupinus. The acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibition activity was detected in each methanolic extract analyzed with similar results. Regarding the butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) enzyme, it was weakly inhibited by the Lupinus extracts; in particular, the highest activity values were recorded for L. albus (1.74 mg GALAE/g). Overall, our results showed that L. cossentinii was the most abundant source of polyphenols, consisting mainly in tyrosol equivalents (5.82 mg/g DW). Finally, significant correlations were outlined between the phenolic compounds and the in vitro biological activity measured, particularly when considering flavones, phenolic acids and lower-molecular-weight phenolics.     

Studies on the Chemical Reactivity of 6,8‐dibromo‐7‐hydroxychromone‐3‐carboxaldehyde Towards Some Nitrogen Nucleophilic Reagents

The chemical reactivity of 6,8‐dibromo‐7‐hydroxychromone‐3‐carboxaldehyde ( 1 ) was studied towards some nitrogen nucleophilic reagents such as heterocyclic amines, 1,2‐N,N‐binucleophiles, 1,2‐N,O‐binucleophiles, 1,3‐N,N‐binucleophiles, 1,4‐N,N‐binucleophiles, 1,4‐N,O‐binucleophiles, and 1,4‐N,S‐binucleophiles under different reaction conditions.     

Demulsification performance and the relative solubility number (RSN) of modified poly(maleic anhydride-alt-1-dodecene) on naturally asphaltenic crude oil emulsion

The performance of modified poly(maleic anhydride-alt-1-dodecene) with polyethylene glycol (PEG 1000) and polypropylene glycol (PPG 1000) as emulsion breakers was investigated. The de-emulsifiers were characterized by their chemical structures, relative solubility numbers (RSN), EO content, PO content, and partition coefficient (K_p). All the prepared copolymers were characterized by FTIR and ¹H NMR spectroscopic techniques and their molecular weights were determined by gel permeation chromatography (GPC). The surface and interfacial properties for the prepared polymeric surfactants were studied. The results obtained showed that the molecular structure of the prepared de-emulsifiers have direct effect on de-emulsification process. De-emulsifiers with more EO?PO content had higher de-emulsification efficiency.     

The Biosynthesis and Catabolism of the Maleic Anhydride Moiety of Stipitatonic Acid

A series of directed knockout experiments, combined with an in vitro assay of pathway components, has elucidated for the first time the chemical steps involved in the biosynthesis of the tropolone class of fungal maleic anhydrides. The pathway involves the stepwise oxidation of aldehyde and methyl carbon atoms to form a 1,2‐dicarboxylate. A hydrolase‐catalyzed interconversion of this and the corresponding maleic anhydride, followed by decarboxylation of the diacid leads to the pathway’s final product of stipitatic acid.     

Synthesis and characterization of new heptacyclic helicenes

New helically chiral substituted heptacyclic systems have been prepared from a simple phenanthrene building block in good yields and purity, via a four-step sequence involving palladium-catalysed Heck coupling and oxidative photocyclization. X-ray crystal structure analysis indicated that the conformation resembled that of the unsubstituted heptahelicene. The optical properties of these heptacyclic helicenes were investigated and show interesting behaviour.     

HF/DF激光传输的大气衰减特性

 大气中的水汽对DF激光主要强线的吸收相对较小，而HF激光的大多数谱线受水汽和CO₂分子等的吸收较大。利用较新的HITRAN96数据库和我国不同地区的气象资料，采用逐线积分法计算了HF/DF 激光的大气衰减情况。所选的谱线中，在合肥地区（年平均）， HF的水汽吸收系数最大值可达到10km^-1的数量级，二氧化碳吸收系数最大可达10^-4~10^-3km^-1量级，P2(8)线吸收最弱；DF激光水汽吸收系数最大值可达到10^-1km^-1,比HF低2个量级，且随高度衰减很快，10km处就到10^-5~10^-4km^-1量级，P2(8)线吸收最弱。在我国，由南向北，由夏季到冬季，水汽浓度减少，大气对HF/DF激光的吸收率也相应地递减。     

大气温度起伏谱的测量

 用直径1μm和10μm金属丝分别测量了大气温度起伏功率谱，提出了测量湍流外尺度的方法。实测结果表明：在复杂的光传输路径上至少有50%的温度谱不符合Kolmogorov的－5/3定律；用直径1μm丝进行单点测量的C2n和直径10μm丝进行双点测量的C₂ⁿ较为一致；80%的外尺度不超过7m。